Lecture series to explore the rise of China

In the last few decades, China has gone from a relatively minor player in international affairs to the second largest economy in the world. Monday (March 4) marks the beginning of an ongoing lecture series at Tulane University, “The Rise of China,” which will look at that nation’s meteoric rise from different academic points of view.

“Cultural Foundations of Chinese Communism” will be the opening lecture on Monday (March 4) for a series with leading scholars who will discuss “The Rise of China.”

“I wanted to bring some very high profile scholars of Chinese politics, to get people exposed to various ways of thinking about China,” says Martin Dimitrov, associate professor of political science, who organized the series that will run during the spring and fall semesters. “The rise of China is such a broad topic and such a complex topic that it can accommodate different disciplinary perspectives.”

In offering perspectives from the fields of political science, sociology, history, foreign policy and law, Dimitrov says he hopes attendees will receive a “more balanced understanding” of the “massive challenges that lie ahead for China in its continued rise.”

Dimitrov says the establishment of the Confucius Institute at Tulane in April indicates that scholarly interest in China is growing as the country continues to develop as a military and economic superpower.

“This is an exciting time for Chinese studies at Tulane, and the future is certainly exciting as well,” Dimitrov says. “The institute will raise awareness of China, and hopefully this lecture series can help.”

The series kicks off on Monday at 4 p.m. in the Norman Mayer Building, Room 106, with Elizabeth Perry, director of the Harvard-Yenching Institute. For more information, contact the political science department via email or by phone at 504-865-5166.